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Angel Ilnisky was paying the rent and living with roommates, so she carefully saved up enough money for a five-per-cent down payment on a house with her partner, Michael Nicholson.

The 29-year-old respiratory therapist at the Alberta Children's Hospital and her 31-year-old oilfield driller partner worked hard to save, but the pair of first-time homebuyers quickly realized there would be plenty of other costs involved with buying their new home.

There was $300 for a home inspection, $1,000 for the lawyer - the hidden costs of home ownership began to mount.

Luckily, some hail damage to the roof was covered by the previous owner's home insurance, so it was totally replaced when they bought it - one less cost to worry about.

They also avoided $800 in moving costs by not hiring a company and doing it themselves by renting a U-Haul and getting some friends to pitch in.

"Thank God for good friends," she says, adding free pizza and beer helped entice enough hands for the actual move-in day in September.

Studies show the first year of home ownership is especially costly, according to Tom Bzowey, vice-president of home and auto insurance for RBC Royal Bank.

"Especially for people buying their first home, there always seems to be unanticipated costs," Bzowey says.

Aside from getting friends to help with the move, there are other ways to prepare for the hidden costs of buying a new home and to save where possible.

Bzowey recommends that buyers create a checklist by going through every added expense in addition to the actual property and work it into the budget.

By saving in advance and by planning for these costs, buyers can save that money before they buy and avoid any nasty surprises.

A buyer's hidden costs - whether it's their first home or third home - tend to be quite elevated for the first couple of years.

"We really encourage people to just get on top of that before they move so they don't have any stress associated with ... all of that kind of stuff," he says.

Bzowey also advises buyers to remember the non-monetary, emotional costs associated with the inherent stress of buying and then moving into a new home.

"The way that breaks down to dollar and cents is that it is stressful and any time we're under stress we're vulnerable to missing some of the details," he says.

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possible extra costs

RBC notes these additional costs to consider when buying a home:

- Home insurance is often required by your mortgage lender and provides protection against loss or damage of your property and its contents and liability claims.

- Life insurance and any related types of insurance (such as disability or critical illness) helps ensure money is there to pay the mortgage if something happens to your spouse or loved one.

- Mortgage loan insurance is re-quired if your down payment is less than 20 per cent of the purchase price.

- Appraisal fees may be required if the lending institution requests that your property be appraised.

- Legal fees include reviewing the offer, drawing up the title deed, conducting a title search and preparing and registering the mortgage.

- A property survey may be required to verify the location of the property's boundaries, measurements and structures and any registered or visible easements or encroachments on the property.

- A home inspection could help evaluate any structural and mechanical problems with the property before you purchase.

- Furniture is the most obvious ad-ditional move-in expense, as people buy new items to go with their new space and are usually made over the first one or two years.

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